About Us
Established in Barnsley in 2005, our knowledge, experience and focus enables us to deliver great value bat surveys across Yorkshire and the Midlands. We differentiate ourselves through our focus on bats; we don’t aim to be all things to all people, or to offer a complete ecology service with nationwide coverage.
Our core staff have more than 15 years’ experience each and practice what they preach, delivering bat conservation schemes in their free time and developing sustainable practices within the business. We use experienced surveyors on every job, supported by the latest night vision and acoustic detection technology, to provide results that you can have faith in. Our status as a Chartered Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management Registered Practice provides further evidence of our standards and professionalism.
If you contact us you will speak to a licensed bat surveyor, not a salesperson. Rather than drawing clients in with cheap initial quotes, we seek to provide a realistic expectation of costs and time requirements from the start. We apply pragmatism and experience to avoid unnecessary or over-specified surveys. These are the reasons our clients keep coming back. We believe a cost and time efficient service can go together with great outcomes for nature.
Greg Slack MCIEEM
Director/Principal Ecologist
Robert Bell MCIEEM
Director/Principal Ecologist
Peter Middleton MCIEEM
Director/Principal Ecologist
I’ve been working as an ecologist for around 18 years. I love that every job is different. I’ve worked in key roles on some of the largest infrastructure projects in the country. These challenging projects come under intense scrutiny so it’s important to get things right, and to be seen to get them right. These roles have tended to be in my specialist area: bat survey and mitigation.
Some of the most interesting jobs I’ve done have been the smaller ones where all sorts of species groups require attention. I’m comfortable leading on most UK protected species work.
I look at each job individually and consider what’s required. I sometimes find innovative ways of working can save time (and cost). It can also result in an increase in quality.
I pride myself on quality, and honesty. Being transparent and open about what’s required, and how to achieve it, is key. My ethos is that doing a job right first time is always the most efficient approach.
My 17 years working in ecology have seen me search for bats beneath Sheffield's streets, catch hedgehogs on remote islands and comb Scottish lake shores for invasive plants. Ecology is my passion and I want our clients to look back on great outcomes, not to begrudge wasted funds.
I have managed survey programmes large and small, for projects ranging from barn conversions through to new rail schemes. I have a passion for bats, I am registered on the Bat Low Impact Class Licence and have eight years experience as a tree climber.
I have a keen interest in plants, am an experienced botanist and have extensive experience of Phase 1 and UK Habitat Classification survey. I work regularly with protected species including great crested newt, badger and reptiles, holding survey licences for great crested newt and barn owl.
I look forward to applying my knowledge and experience to help achieve your project ambitions!
I have worked in ecology for over 20 years, initially on conservation projects. Work undertaken includes survey of Peak District National Park breeding birds for the Moors for the Future project and 13 years of annual nightjar surveys for Natural England on the Humberhead Peatlands National Nature Reserve.
I have undertaken a wide variety of surveys on some large infrastructure projects together with hundreds of small scale projects ranging from domestic bat surveys to Ecological Appraisals.
I am an expert ornithologist and have undertaken bird surveys for large wind farm projects in locations including Turkey. I am also an experienced and competent botanist having many years’ experience in undertaking Phase 1 and detailed botanical surveys. Protected species is a large part of our work and I hold survey licences for bats and great crested newt.
For me ecology is a way of life, not an occupation.